Inside The Panthers

Kenny Pickett Caps Sensational Preseason Against Falcons

Former Pitt Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett was nearly flawless this preseason.

Stephen Thompson

Kenny Pickett Caps Sensational Preseason Against Falcons
Kenny Pickett Caps Sensational Preseason Against Falcons /
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PITTSBURGH -- Former Pitt Panthers Kenny Pickett and the Pittsburgh Steelers closed the 2022-23 regular season on a tear, winning seven of their final nine games and knocking on the door of a playoff berth.

And in his second preseason, the former first-round pick out of Pitt is flashing signs that second-year leap fans and coaches had hoped for is real. After a 4-4, 86-yard outing against the Atlanta Falcons, Pickett ended his preseason having completed 13 of 15 passes for 199 yards and a pair of touchdowns. 

Pickett's connection with fellow second-year Steeler George Pickens was evident from the opener against Tampa Bay, when he hit the former Georgia star wideout with a bullet of a pass for a 33-yard touchdown. 

Perhaps his most impressive throw came in Week 2 against the Buffalo Bills, when he perfectly placed a 25-yard touchdown pass on the back shoulder of tight end Pat Friermuth. 

Against Atlanta, Pickett hit both Diontae Johnson to get his unit out of the shadow of its own goalpost, and then to Pickens for another gain of more than 30 yards, which set up a short touchdown run from Najee Harris. 

Each of the five drives Pickett commanded ended in touchdowns for the new-look Steelers offense. 

The competition gets much harder when the Steelers welcome the vaunted 49ers defense to Pittsburgh for the season opener, but Pickett and the offense look more than up to the task for now. 

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Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper.  He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press.  During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general.  You can reach Stephen by email at stephenethompson00@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter. Read his latest work:

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